Women are using the same business strategies as men but still find themselves behind their male counterparts in entrepreneurial activity.

New research from the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM) shows that women often display patterns of behaviour similar to men, such as seeking opportunities, taking risks, networking and honing their skills, yet men remain nearly twice as likely as women to start their own business.

The research, sponsored by the London Business School and Babson College in Massachussetts, looked at entrepreneurship in high- and middle-income countries and found the gender gap widest in high-income countries, such as the UK.

Men in these countries are twice as likely to engage in both early-stage and established ventures. In middle-income countries, however, the gap narrows to 25.6% in early-stage and broadens to 59.1 % for established business owners.

“What we see in middle-income countries is that the gender gap in entrepreneurial activity actually narrows,” said Maria Minniti, of Babson College and lead researcher for GEM Women.

“When you connect this to the higher level of necessity entrepreneurship by all entrepreneurs in middle-income countries, it’s not hard to believe that the gap narrows because there is less opportunity for men, rather than because women have achieved greater parity.”

Though more women start up out of necessity, the results gave some encouraging signs toward women’s increasing entrepreneurial confidence in high-income countries.

The report found that women’s businesses in countries like the United States and UK are just as likely to survive and thrive as men’s, and young women aged 25 to 34 are active in ‘early-stage’ enterprises. These women were found to be more optimistic about their company’s growth potential, according to GEM.

Women in these countries who are most likely to be entrepreneurs are those who hold jobs, have higher levels of household income and education and have confidence in their level of skill and in the possibility of their success.

The survey was conducted among more than 107,400 respondents in 35 countries.